Nuggets effusive in praise for interim Adelman

OKLAHOMA CITY -- In the immediate aftermath of the Denver Nuggets' season ending, team governor Josh Kroenke declined to directly address the franchise's head coaching vacancy.

But Kroenke, who made the decision to fire longtime coach Michael Malone and general manager Calvin Booth with three games remaining in the regular season, expressed enthusiastic appreciation for the team's response under the leadership of interim coach David Adelman.

"Outside of the championship, this is the most proud I've been because these guys have really rallied," Kroenke told ESPN in the Nuggets' locker room after Sunday's 125-93 loss to the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder.

Adelman is considered a strong candidate to have the interim tag removed and become the Nuggets' head coach on a permanent basis, according to league and team sources.

Adelman, who turned 44 on Thursday, had developed good relationships with Denver's core players during his eight seasons as a Nuggets assistant coach before Malone was fired in April. He built a case to become Malone's permanent replacement by coaching the Nuggets to victories in the final three games of the regular season to claim the Western Conference's No. 4 seed and a seven-game first-round victory over the LA Clippers before pushing the 68-win Thunder to seven games.

"I love DA," said Nuggets power forward Aaron Gordon, one of four starters remaining from Denver's 2022-23 championship team. "I hope he's here next year. I hope he's our next coach. I hope he gets an entire training camp and a whole offseason to figure out his philosophy. DA's great. He was excellent for us, and I hope that he's here next year."

Adelman declined to discuss the prospect of becoming the Nuggets' next head coach, saying it was not the appropriate "time for me to think about that" in the wake of Denver's season-ending loss.

"Decision-makers will make that decision," said Adelman, the son of former NBA coach Rick Adelman. "Obviously blessed to have this opportunity to take the helm and lead this team. If I'm not back next year, I'll obviously never forget this. It's been an incredible experience. To have the buy-in from the guys was really special for me."

Three-time MVP Nikola Jokic said the hiring of a coach is a decision made "above my pay grade." However, Jokic praised Adelman for his performance under difficult circumstances.

"You had three games to change something," Jokic said. "I think he changed energy. I think the guys were woken up a little. Guys had more energy. He made us believe something, and we played good. We played a seven-game series against the best team in the NBA. We had opportunity, we had chances. I think he did a really good job."

Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray said Adelman did a "great job" and credited him with coming up with creative schemes, such as the variety of zone defenses that kept the Thunder off balance for most of this series.

Oklahoma City's Mark Daigneault, the NBA Coach of the Year in 2023-24, was impressed by his counterpart in the series.

"He was thrust into a very challenging leadership position and handled it very well," Daigneault said. "And I think what stood out is that wasn't all smooth. They lost some games in the regular season. They lost, got blown out in one of the games in the Clipper series. They got blown out here in Game 2, and that team kept competing and stayed together through all the ups and downs of their experiences, which is first of all a testament to their championship mindset, but also a testament to the relationships that he must've built over a long time for those guys.

"They really had his back. So I was just very, very impressed with him from a distance. I don't know him at all, but I had the utmost respect after having competed against him."

ESPN's Ramona Shelburne contributed to this report.